Review of The Last Exorcism

The Last Exorcism is yet another entry into the faux-documentary horror sub-genre, an approach to filmmaking that for me has lost every bit of the little charm and intrigue it ever held. Its especially frustrating here, because an interesting concept and admirable performances power this story along nicely. If only they werent caged by the limitations and short-comings inherent to this tired, post-vogue trend in movie-making style. We couldve had a really good film here, rather than an adequate one. Oh well. Fortunately The Last Excorcism looks better than many of the hand-held thrillers that have come along in recent years. The film-quality is good enough not to call attention to itself, and the camera work generally adds to the film more than it takes away. But when a studio adds ambiance music and pieces of horror score on top of the real footage it breaks the tone, the suspension of reality, and the rules of the entire game. This film doesnt understand that you cant have both. The last Exorcism is lower in scares and creepiness than I hoped, but far higher in acting ability and screen-writing than Id ever have imagined, so I must applaud it for that. Sadly this all only makes the largely disappointing, tacted-on, PG-13-as-hell final act all the more unsatisfying.